Tag: quality of life

Watch Your Time

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There’s only one post published about this and you are welcome to read it here. I haven’t written about this nearly enough. The sand timer is considered a valuable asset in my daily life. It’s helps me watch the time.

My Mama receives the credit for teaching me the value of time. There wasn’t an idle moment in our home. She always had us doing something and the two words you never let Mama hear you say were, “I’m bored.” On rainy days if she couldn’t find enough for us to do inside she would say, “Read a book.” When we’d run outside to play, or over to a friends house, her parting words were, “Watch your time.” We had to be home in time for dinner.

In March of 2020, I was walking through a large home store, just browsing the shelves when I spotted this sand timer. It was sitting on a shelf like it was out of place, or the only one left. It didn’t have a tag of description, only a sticker with a bar code. I pulled out my phone, opened the timer app and started the timer. I carried the sand timer through the store letting it run and watching the timer. The sand ran out at 30 minutes.

When sitting in front of the blank page, I flip it over, and keep an eye on my time. Whether it’s morning pages, a Blogpost, or a project, I sit and work on it for 30 minutes at a time. Do you ever get to the end of the day and wonder where the time went? With the sand timer you can watch your time.

Feel the Music

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I’ve debunked numerous rules of life I’ve come to live by. One being this Blog. My ‘day’ to post Feel the Music is usually Sunday, but I wrestle with choosing a particular day to post. It causes a sense of pressure to perform, and writing is a gift, not a performance.

I didn’t realize Keifer Sutherland could sing until last week. A friend posted this to her Facebook page, and I’m inspired to share. As you go through your week, be mindful of what you lay your heart and hand to, and above all else my darling, may it be something you love.

Keifer Sutherland-Something You Love

These Two Chairs

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We have thought about buying a couch for as long as we’ve lived here.

I spent time cleaning over the weekend, and then did some rearranging of the den. As I was moving furniture around, I remembered the couch sitting here the first time we saw this house. It sat right underneath the window sill, and ran the length of the wall. Three years later, we still haven’t bought a couch. 😂

Sitting at the coffee table this morning, I looked across the table at her chair. It was empty. She is out, living her life, which I want her to do. She called and was excited about new tires for her Jeep. Her father took her tire shopping, and I sat and listened as she described every detail. That’s my girl excited about tires!

The main reason we haven’t bought a couch is these two chairs. They were designed and made around 15 years ago, for a formal living room which you can read about here. They are extra wide and the cushions are stuffed with down, so you can curl up and never leave. If we get a couch, they will have to go into storage, because neither of us can part with them.

These two chairs have held us up during every ‘love of my life’ breakup. They are wide enough to hold a box of tissues and a blanket. The fabric is formal, so I looked into having them recovered, and because they are so well made, the estimate started at $800 per chair. New fabric is not in their future.

Nowadays, her chair is empty more often than not, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. Through the years, the one place we always felt seen and supported is while sitting in these two chairs.

The Wrong Screen

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The main reason I joined the Fearless community was to confirm what’s meaningful and rediscover my meaningful work. I knew writing was meaningful, but it doesn’t feel like work, hence the confusion.

I struggled for a while finding time to blog. It’s easy to get wrapped up in all the changes happening within my job, but here’s what I know today. There’s no amount of money worth taking up all of my time.

Writing is not something I try to find time for, it’s what I want to do. It’s about allowing a space to open, sitting down in that space and not leaving until I’m out of words. It’s a sacred space to let the words spill, and spill they do.

Taking time to write in our lives gives us the time of our lives.

Julia Cameron-The Writer’s Life
Photo by Danielle MacInnes on Unsplash

It’s a cool morning in Texas halleluiah!

The front door swung open early to let the cool breeze wash over the inside of our home. Our house cat, Chombus, loves sitting in front of the screen door. I noticed him staring intently at something on the front porch, so I walked over to investigate his fascination.

It was a twig rocking back and forth, being moved by the wind. Being an indoor cat, he’s never experienced a twig, so I opened the door and brought it inside to lay it on the floor in front of him. He moved it around and tried to bite it, just doing cat things to the twig.

That’s the kind of life I enjoy, where I’m never too busy to hand our cat a twig. As I finish typing this up to go back to my work, I can’t really classify writing as meaningful work. It doesn’t feel like work but is packed full of meaning.

There’s meaningful moments within our everyday life. It’s a matter of stepping away from the computer screen and standing in front of the screen door. Thank you Chombus, (the cat) for reminding me this morning not to spend too much time in front of the wrong screen.

Happy Friday my darlings. ~ Big love! Barb

The Seeds of Success by Og Mandino

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God, I thank you for this day.

I know I have not accomplished as yet all you expect of me, and if that is your reason for bathing me in the fresh dew of another dawn, I am most grateful.

I am prepared at last, to make you proud of me.

I will forget yesterday, with all it’s trial and tribulations, aggravations and setbacks, angers and frustrations. The past is already a dream from which I can neither retrieve a single word nor erase any foolish deeds.

I will resolve, however, that if I have injured anyone yesterday through my thoughtlessness, I will not let this day’s sun set before I make amends, and nothing I do today will be of greater importance.

I will not fret the future. My success and happiness does not depend on straining to see what lurks dimly on the horizon, but to do, this day, what lies clearly at hand.

I will treasure this day, for it is all I have. I know that’s it’s rushing hours cannot be accumulated or stored, like precious grain, for future use.

I will live as all good actors do when they are on stage-only in the moment. I cannot perform at my best today by regretting my previous act’s mistakes or worrying about the scene to come.

I will embrace today’s difficult tasks, take off my coat, and make dust in the world. I will remember that the busier I am, the less harm I am apt to suffer, the tastier will be my food, the sweeter my sleep, and the better satisfied I will be with my place in the world.

I will free myself today from slavery to the clock and calendar. Although I will plan this day in order to conserve my steps and energy, I will begin to measure my life in deeds, not years; in thoughts, not seasons; in feelings, not figures on a dial.

I will remain aware of how little it takes to make this a happy day. Never will I pursue happiness, because it is not a goal, just a by-product, and there is no happiness in having or in getting, only in giving.

I will run from no danger I might encounter today, because I am certain that nothing will happen to me that I am not equipped to handle with your help. Just as any gem is polished by friction, I am certain to become more valuable through this day’s adversities, and if you close one door, you always open another for me.

I will live this day as if it were Christmas. I will be a giver of gifts and deliver to my enemies the gift of forgiveness; my opponents, tolerance; my friends, a smile; my children, a good example, and every gift will be wrapped with unconditional love.

I will waste not even a precious second today in anger or hate or jealousy or selfishness. I know that the seeds I sow will harvest, because every action, good or bad, is always followed by an equal reaction. I will plant only good seeds this day.

I will treat today as a priceless violin. One may draw harmony from it and another, discord, yet no one will blame the instrument. Life is the same, and if I play it correctly, it will forth beauty, but if I play it ignorantly, it will produce ugliness.

I will condition myself to look on every problem I encounter today as no more than a pebble in my shoe. I remember the pain, so harsh I could hardly walk, and recall my surprise when I removed my shoe and found only a grain of sand.

I will work convinced that nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm. To do anything today that is truly worth doing, I must not stand back shivering and thinking of the cold and danger, but jump in the gusto and scramble through as well as I can.

I will face the world with goals set for this day, but they will be attainable ones, not the vague, impossible variety declared by those who make a career of failure. I realize that you always try me a little first, to see what I would do with a lot.

I will never hide my talents. If I am silent, I am forgotten, if I do not advance, I will fall back. If I walk away from any challenge today, my self-esteem will be forever scarred, and if I cease to grow, even a little, I will become smaller. I reject the stationary position because it is always the beginning of the end.

I will keep a smile on my face and in my heart even when it hurts today. I know that the world is a looking-glass and gives back to me the reflection of my own soul. Now I understand the secret of correcting the attitude of others and that is to correct my own.

I will turn away from any temptation today that might cause me to break my word or lose my self-respect. I am positive that the only thing I possess more valuable than my life is my honor.

I will work this day with all my strength, content in the knowledge that life does not consist of wallowing in the past or peering anxiously at the future. It is appalling to contemplate the great number of painful steps by which one arrives at a truth so old, so obvious, and so frequently expressed. Whatever it offers, little or much, my life is now.

I will pause whenever I am feeling sorry for myself today, and remember that this is the only day I have and must play it to the fullest. What my part may signify in the great whole. I may not recognize, but I am here to play it and now is the time.

I will count this day a separate life.

I will remember that those who have fewest regrets are those who take each moment as it comes for all that it’s worth.

This is my day!

These are my seeds.

Thank you, God, for this precious garden of time.

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Them Three Days

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This is the first time, in three days, I’ve turned on my laptop. I pulled back my bedroom drapes this morning, just to make sure there was still a world. I’ve been asleep for 3 days.

Before Chemo, this would never have happened. Oh sure, I could take a nap every now and then, but to allow my body to curl up and just sleep? A toothache was the culprit, but is getting better. I have heard that Chemo is hard on your teeth, but I wasn’t prepared for this.

I lit some of my favorite candles, and just went with it.

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My sponsor told me years ago, a lot can happen in 3 days. She would always suggest, waiting 3 days before making any monumental decisions, or taking action. Something would happen to give me a revelation, or the time would cause it’s importance to fall away.

One thing I wanted to accomplish this week was give my daughter a ‘Birthday week.’ I don’t believe I’ve ever done it before, maybe when she was little, but she turns 17, August 8th. So, I went around to different shops, and collected 7 little things I thought she would like. Little things to remind her of who she is, where we’ve been, and where we’re headed.

I had the clarity of mind, to write a note about the item, which is all the writing I’ve done, up until now. I loved writing her the note more than anything, because the words just flowed from my heart to hers. She got choked up a couple of times, but there should be emotion in our writing. I’m so grateful to have been able to do that for her each day.

Today is Day 3, of her birthday week, and I’m having trouble deciding what to give her next. I’m thinking it will be the LED sign that says, “No Regrets.” I want her to know at this young age, to live a life of no regrets.

That means doing things that scare you sometimes, like Chemo, but I can honestly say, I have no regrets in my life. Just keep living, loving, and learning.

Stay the Path

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Today is my last day on “the job.” I received a text lastnight saying they had hired someone to take my place. It’s a good thing I don’t get offended anymore.

I knew it was only temporary. Stepping in when it was needed, and helping to hold together what was in place. My life is full, so doing this alongside everything else was a challenge.

Knowing it was a temporary assignment, I was able to do the best I could, seeing a light at the end of the tunnel. You may laugh at this scenario, because I did, but picture this. I had two laptops set up in the house. One was my own personal laptop, that I write on, encourage others on my Letitgocoach Facebook page, and nurture my world through.

The other was one from this job. It housed everything work related to the job, and made a lot of noise. It dinged everytime an email, or voicemail came into that office. When I first took it into my possession, the lady that had it before me had the sound muted. Now I know why. It constantly beckoned for my attention if I was sitting at my laptop across the room.

It can be noisy, and distracting, but I jumped back and forth, trying to take care of both.

Today I take the laptop back, and hand it to the new girl with glee. Even though making extra money was nice, it was not worth doing it any longer.

My personal laptop brings me so much joy! There is no price tag for that. Everything I do on it, is because I have a yearning to do so. It houses my passion.

Sometimes we veer off the path to learn new things, or to help someone out. I am grateful today that I am quicker to get back on my path, and that I still choose joy over money. Stay the path.